Metric System (SI) Measuring Fun Activity Middle, High School Science

Grade 8 STEM

This resource was created to help teachers review and teach the Metric system and density. It is a classic lab highly recommended for the start of the school year. Students will be engaged and learn how to use the Metric System

This product contains

1. Fun no prep lab

2. 10 Metric problems

3. Answer Key

MATERIALS

Ruler

10 index cards

Balance

Graduate cylinder

Rubber stopper

Water

The metric system​ is a decimal system based on the meter, liter, and gram as units of length, capacity, and weight or mass. The system was first proposed by the French astronomer and mathematician Gabriel Mouton (1618–94) in 1670 and was standardized in France under the Republican government in the 1790s. Unlike the English system which has multiple units for length (inch, foot, yard, mile), the metric only has one – the meter (m). Similarly, there are four basic metric units: ● Length – meter (m) ● Mass – gram (g) ● Volume – liter (l or L) ● Time – second (s) Base unit values can be modified (made larger or smaller) through the use of prefixes (ex. kilo­, 1000; hecto­, 100; deka­, 10; deci­, 0.1; centi­, 0.01; milli­, 0.001).